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Watch Jay Leno drive the massive 14-liter La Bestioni Rusty Two

Part fire truck; part boattail speedster -- totally awesome

March 21, 2016

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The latest machine to roll into Jay Leno’s garage? A heavily modified American LaFrance fire truck. Decommissioned over 50 years ago, the fire engine was cannibalized for anything of value, and then pushed into the woods to start nature’s recycling. That is, until a couple elderly firemen exploring in the woods stumbled upon its remains. Eventually, the rusty hulk made its way to craftsman Gary Wales and the La Bestioni Rusty Two was born.

Aside from the hood and radiator, the coachwork was shaped by hand -- without a conceptual drawing. In the video, Wales explains that the designs are in his head, and the only pattern made was for the cowl -- the speedster-style tail is crafted from different hardwoods. Amazingly, Wales says the build only took him a year to complete.

If that doesn’t get the heart pumping, the engine should. The derelict fire engine still moves using its original 14-liter I6 T-head motor. That loosely translates to about 2.3 liters per cylinder -- larger than a lot of modern I4 mills have in total. With four spark plugs per cylinder, and two different ignition systems, it’s unlikely that this wouldn’t want to start on a cold day.

Power feeds to a three-speed gearbox, and eventually drives the rear wheels via a chain. Wales didn’t leave all the antiquated tech in place, replacing the original mechanical brakes with modern discs and even adding power steering. That being said, it's still right up Jay’s alley.